Landowner Betty Bailey (second from left) welcomed Virginia Tech service-learning students (left to right) J.B. Snelson, Chris Mernin, Spencer Blankenship, and Bonnie Lawrie on a rainy day in late September to identify possibilities for planting trees to reduce erosion along stream banks on her property.

Virginia Tech students are participating in a program connecting them with landowners to solve problems related to soil erosion, biodiversity, crop production and more. Here is a press release from the university:

For a second year, a group of agroforestry students from Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources worked on a collaborative service-learning program with landowners in the Catawba and North Fork valleys and the university’s Catawba Sustainability Center as a component of the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation’s agroforestry course.

The program’s primary objective is to facilitate shared whole-farm agroforestry learning — the combination of agricultural and forestry technologies to create more diverse, productive, profitable, healthy, and sustainable land-use systems — by pairing students with landowners throughout the semester. In addition to lectures and laboratories on agroforestry principles, history, and practices, students conduct a series of service-learning property- and landscape-level assessments. Read more »

Front row, left to right are John Galbraith and Nina O’Malley. Back row, left to right are James Currie, Dan Johnson, Randy Cosby, Heather Taylor, and Katie Wooten

Virginia Tech’s soil judging team has won the 2010 American Society of Agronomy National Soil Judging competition. Here is a press release from the university:

The Virginia Tech Soil Judging Team in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences won first place overall at the 50th American Society of Agronomy National Soil Judging Contest hosted by Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, March 20-27.

This is the third national championship for Virginia Tech and the second since 2005. Read more »

Professor Jianhua Xing of Virginia Tech is using a new physics approach to antibiotic resistance. Here is a press release from the university:

A Virginia Tech biologist proposes to use a physics strategy called resonant activation to nudge dormant bacteria cells into a stage where they will be sensitive to antibiotics.

In medicine, resonance means the sound the doctor hears when he or she thumps your chest. In physics, resonance is a periodic force or an oscillation whose frequency is close to that of a natural system’s frequency. Sound waves are an example of a natural system that can be altered with resonant activation. Read more »

Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Jim Cheng will speak at the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project’s 41st “Water is Life” Luncheon in Roanoke on May 7. Here is a press release from the organization:

Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project will host its 41^st Anniversary Water Is Life Luncheon on Friday, May 7 from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. at Holiday Inn Roanoke Valley View on 3315 Ordway Drive in Roanoke.

The 41^st Anniversary Water Is Life Luncheon will celebrate those individuals and organizations that have helped bring clean running water to low income rural communities throughout Virginia and the southeastern United States. Read more »

Congressman Goodlatte is hosting a job fair at James Madison University on Friday. Here is a press release from Goodlatte’s office and an updated list of participating companies:

Friday, April 30th
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.: Congressman Goodlatte will host a job fair at the Convocation Center on the campus of James Madison University.  The Convocation Center is located off University Blvd. in Harrisonburg. Parking will be available. Local businesses and corporations will be on hand to meet with job seekers.

No registration necessary for job seekers. Area businesses who would like to participate in the job fair should contact Congressman Goodlatte’s Harrisonburg office at 540-432-2391.

Businesses Participating in the Job Fair: Read more »

“Discover Lynchburg”, the visitors bureau in Lynchburg, won two awards for advertising and marketing initiatives at the annual Tourism Summit for the state of Virginia. Here is a press release from Discover Lynchburg:

The Lynchburg Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau won two awards at the annual Tourism Summit sponsored by the Virginia Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (VACVB). The three day event, held recently in Fairfax, was attended by tourism professionals and DMO’s from all around the sate, members of the Virginia Tourism Corporation and hosted speakers including Governor Bob McDonnell, Delegate Dave Nutter and VCC’s Hugh Keogh. Read more »

Leadership Lynchburg has planned a free seminar on April 29 for human resources professionals about challenges presented by baby boomer retirement. Here is a press release from the organization:

A group of Leadership Lynchburg Class 38 members will be hosting a seminar for human resources professionals to address the baby boomer retirement challenge, managing the multigenerational workforce, and how Areva is preparing for baby boomer retirements.

Steve Nielsen, Associate Professor of Education and Human Development at Lynchburg College; and Gloria Witt, Human Resources Manage in the Human Development Department at Areva. This FREE morning seminar is on Thursday, April 29th from 9-11:30 a.m. and will be held in the Hume Room at Westminster Canterburg, 501 VES Road. To RSVP, please contact Sarah Lambert at slambert@bankofthejames.com or call 434-455-7521. Space is limited.

Gov. Bob McDonnell visited Martinsville today to talk about the economy. Here’s the full release from the governor’s office: Read more »

A multibuilding industrial complex is proposed for a 46-acre site in the Falling Branch Corporate Park.

However, Christiansburg and Montgomery County officials are not disclosing what type of facility it will be, other than describing it as an economic development project that could benefit the community.

Reporter Sharla Bardin of The Roanoke Times has more on this story.

The Roanoke Times will host a virtual job fair May 2-May 14 with positions in the Roanoke and New River Valleys. Here is a press release from the Roanoke Times:

Job seekers can look for positions in the Roanoke and New River valleys and Lynchburg at their convenience during the upcoming Virtual Job Fair, hosted by The Roanoke Times and jobs.roanoke.com.  The Virtual Job Fair will be held from Sunday, May 2 through Friday, May 14 online at http://jobs.roanoke.com, the leading employment and recruitment site in Southwest Virginia. Read more »